Educational philosophy/Aims of the curriculum

Mathematics is a creative and highly inter-connected discipline that has been developed over centuries, providing the solution to some of history's most intriguing problems.

It is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment.

A high-quality mathematics education therefore provides a foundation for understanding the world, the ability to reason mathematically, an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject.

KS4 Curriculum

The main changes to the curriculum are as follows:

The volume of the subject content has increased.

The demand of that content has increased too with harder topics being introduced at both the Foundation Tier and the Higher Tier.

There are fewer marks at the lower grades and more marks at the higher grades for both the Foundation Tier and the Higher Tier.

The exams will have a greater emphasis on problem solving and mathematical reasoning with more marks being awarded to these higher-order skills. There will now also be a much-reduced formula sheet so students will need to memorise many of the formulae currently given in the exam papers. For example, for the new GCSE in Mathematics (Grade 9-1) – first exam in Summer 2017 – students will now be required to memorise many formulae which were previously given in the exam eg, the quadratic formula, and the sine and cosine rules.

KS4 Programme of study

Foundation tier (Grades 1-5)

Number

Structure and calculation

Fractions, decimals and percentages

Measures and accuracy

Algebra

Notation, vocabulary and manipulation

Graphs

Solving equations and inequalities

Sequences

Ratio, proportion and rates of change

Geometry and sequences

Properties and constructions

Mensuration and calculation

Vectors

Probability

Statistics

The following topics are new to Foundation tier (previously Higher tier only):